A compilation of daily news articles from around the United States about deaths (including both people and animals) that appear to occur in the context of a past or present intimate relationship, focusing on 2009-present. (NOTE: this blog is limited to incidents that appear in the media and are captured by our search terms. We recognize this is not an exhaustive portrayal of all deaths resulting from intimate violence.)
When is society going to realize intimate violence makes victims of us all?

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

A 90-year-old Pennsylvania woman was
shot dead overnight after getting caught in a crossfire between police
and an armed suspect who barricaded himself inside his apartment.

Andrew
Cairns, 49, surrendered himself early Wednesday morning following a
seven-hour standoff in Warminster Township during which he had fired
numerous rounds from a high-caliber handgun, according to police.

The
drama unfolded at around 4pm Tuesday when police say Cairns was
involved in a domestic disturbance with his common-law wife in the 2000
building at the Jefferson on the Creek apartment complex at 675 East
Street Road.

A domestic
violence case worker was initially dispatched to the scene, but nearly
four hours later, a second call came from the residence about shots
being fired, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Detectives
who were in the area on an unrelated matter rushed to the building and
were met with a barrage of bullets fired at by the suspect, who
barricaded himself inside his unit.

Officials said Cairns' wife was able to escape the apartment unharmed at around 8.30pm.

All
the surrounding roads were closed and the apartment building was
evacuated, with about 40-60 residents being sent to the William Tenant
High School gymnasium where the Red Cross set up a temporary shelter.
The Davisville Shopping Center was also evacuated.

The responding cops took cover in a
nearby ravine and returned fire. Warminster Police Chief Mike Murphy
said during a press conference Wednesday morning that some of the rounds
whizzed by officers' heads, nearly striking them, Phillyburbs.com reported.

In
the protracted gun battle that followed, Cairns’ 90-year-old downstairs
neighbor was struck by a bullet and died at the scene from her
injuries. It remains unknown who shot the victim.

Her
body was discovered inside the unit at around 10.30pm. The woman's
relatives have since been notified of her death, but her name is being
withheld pending a positive identification by the coroner.

Cairns remained holed up inside his apartment for hours until a police negotiator finally managed to talk him into surrendering,Patch.com reported. At
around 2.30am, he finally turned himself in to police and was charged
with aggravated assault. It is expected that the 49-year-old will face
additional counts. Murphy said police have responded to Cairns' apartment in the past for domestic disputes, but none of them were violent.

This
is not Cairns' first serious run-in with the law. In 2007, he was
charged with making terrorist threats, assault and reckless
endangerment, but the charges were dropped for lack of prosecution.